Eva Longoria & Cris Abrego launch Hyphenate Media Group, with Banijay backing

Eva Longoria & Cris Abrego

Actor and producer Eva Longoria has teamed up with long-time production partner Cris Abrego to launch Hyphenate Media Group, a new media holding company and content studio.

The duo announced the launch at MIPCOM in Cannes this afternoon, revealing that Longoria will serve as Hyphenate’s chief creative officer, while Abrego will act as CEO.

The company has backing from production and distribution giant Banijay, where Abrego has served as chairman of the Americas since 2020. The new firm will invest in “creator-led enterprises” with “proven leadership and the potential to scale” as it looks to build out a portfolio of partners.

Longoria and Abrego are also committed to fulfilling the “urgent demand for ground-breaking premium content with an inclusive approach and broad appeal” by supporting   multi-hyphenate creator-entrepreneurs.

To jumpstart its production business, Hyphenate has acquired the full slate of UnbeliEVAble Entertainment, the independent production label founded by Longoria in 2005 and behind titles such as Telenovela, Grand Hotel, and Searching For Mexico.

UnbeliEVAble Entertainment projects will be folded into the core operations of the new business, with Hyphenate taking over and advancing the entire lineup as well as developing new scripted and unscripted programs. Its first title, Apple TV+’s Land Of Women, is expected to be released in 2024. Both Abrego and Longoria will produce exclusively for the new company, and all television projects directed by Longoria will be produced under the new banner.

“With Hyphenate Media Group, Eva and I are building an engine for culture-defining content by investing in visionary multi-hyphenate artists and providing these extraordinary creative leaders with the resources and infrastructure they need to scale their businesses,” said Abrego. “Through capital, brand development, and the leadership provided by Hyphenate, we will drive their creative output, enhance their deal-making capacity, and grow their brands, building franchises driven by original IP.”

Longoria added: “We are answering the industry’s call for premium inclusive content with broad appeal and an undeniable point of view. Our intention is to provide greater financial participation for makers, creators, talent, and entrepreneurs – the Hyphenates. Given the multiple transformations that our business is undergoing, I cannot think of a better time to lean into makers, who are the essential drivers of the creative enterprise.”